Of all the work that I have done at JJR, I can honestly say that I enjoyed my shadow day with Jackie the most because of the insight that it gave me into real-world marketing and the professional experience that I gained from just a few hours. The client meeting at The LaCava Center was extremely insightful in that it allowed me to meet face to face with a client for the first time ever and see the way that Jackie presents herself and JJR Marketing to the public and potential clients. Personally, I thought it was amazing to be able to see the way that the marketing strategies that JJR Marketing uses can help and enhance a business while also maintaining and achieving the client’s goals. During the meeting at The LaCava Center, the representative for the client’s marketing team spoke with us about what they are currently doing and what they would like to do in the future with the help of JJR Marketing. In the end, both parties had a good idea of what the plan was for the future of marketing at The LaCava Center and we could see a vision become a potential reality as the meeting progressed. One of the most impactful things that I learned just from this meeting is that treating each client, as an individual is one of the most important things in marketing. As the meeting moved forward, I saw how Jackie could cater the strategies that JJR Marketing is currently using to the individual needs and goals of the client. This helped reinforce the lesson that I learned at the internship workshop about selecting the most effective vehicles of marketing for each client and project.
As the day went on, Jackie and I also attended a video shoot for Gabriela Rodil who is another client. This video shoot was meant to help the client create videos that would draw more people into her business and educate people about topics such as “Parachuting CFOs” and managing finances. The main thing that I learned from the video shoot is that even though marketing may seem like a very impersonal thing from the outside, the best strategy to use is to guide the client through everything that they do. This is something that Jackie and I did when we attended the video shoot. We were not only there to help Ms. Rodil through the process of marketing herself through the videos. We were also there to help support her as a client through something that she had never done before. This showed me that marketing is a lot more than just giving a client a plan of attack for their company. It is about guiding them through this plan and being there for them when they need us the most as they execute the plan.
Just when I though the Shadow day was coming to a close, I was given perhaps the most valuable opportunity yet. On the drive back, Jackie allowed me to interview her and ask any question that I could think of in regards to marketing, owning a business, getting ahead in business and being a woman in business. Throughout the interview, I learned so much about all of these things and how I can make all of them a reality for myself in the future. With each question that I asked, Jackie was able to not only answer it, but also relate the answer back to marketing and my own life. A few of the things that we mainly focused on were the importance of networking and how to get ahead in business. In regards to networking, I learned that that is perhaps the most important thing in business because it allows you to interact with valuable connections and market yourself in the business world. In regards to getting ahead in business, Jackie taught me that you must take risks and be willing to put your all into everything that you do. I learned that working this way can help set me apart from just about anybody else.
Lastly, I would like to take some time to thank Jackie for the AMAZING experience that she has provided me with throughout the course of my internship. I have gained priceless knowledge about marketing, working with clients and all things business! Every day I learn something new and I am empowered by Jackie’s work and by the work that everybody else does at JJR Marketing. This has truly been the most insightful experience of my life and I know that it will help me in my future business endeavors. Thank you, Jackie! You are truly a huge inspiration to me!